My trip to Salt Lake last week was thought-provoking and inspiring to say the least! A big part of the conference was about our new book 'Great Work'. If you've read the book then you'll know it's crammed full of inspirational stories of people out there making a difference in their work lives every day and it explores the characteristics of those people.
What really brought this to life for me though and made me emotionally connect even more was actually watching the videos of those people telling their own stories…I'm going to include a link to one of them in this blog and I strongly recommend grabbing a tissue before you watch it.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fE5b57NP1Y&w=420&h=315]
What you see from this clip is the perfect example of re-framing your role. Moses did not see himself as just a 'cleaner', he saw his role within the hospital's mission to: offer hope. He saw that he had the ability to make things slightly easier for the families in his care through his thoughtful words and compassion. He took the time to care when others missed this opportunity completely. I believe it's essential for all of us to spend some time remembering why we do what we do. If in your job you can be yourself, be true to your values and understand your role in the bigger picture of your organisation's mission and vision then you are likely to be more engaged, reach higher levels of job satisfaction and feel empowered to make a difference in your own unique way every day.
We hear so much about how companies need to drive employee engagement but so much of that power lies in our own hands as employees of companies large and small all over the world. An organisations responsibility is to create cultures that inspire us to discover, encourage us to innovate, empower us to be ourselves and to provide authentic leaders to guide and inspire us along the way. It's not easy and it can't happen overnight but surely it's worth it….what company out there wouldn't want their people to produce 'great work' every day….not just good but 'great work'. Work that promises to contribute to real bottom line results and most importantly a sense of opportunity and well-being, one of the key drivers of employee engagement.
I did my own re-framing of my role a little while ago and it makes a huge difference in most interactions that I have. My core motivation in life is to make a difference…at work, at home, with my family and friends so I approach as many conversations as I can with this in mind. I may not always have the answers but I will always try my best to create an outcome that makes a difference.
Mindi (from the embedded clip) explains the idea of 'reframing your role' really well, "I think it's the difference between working with your head down and with your head up. You need to look at everything going on around your job so that your eyes are open to possibilities. If you look at how your work affects others, at how relationships work, at what others want and need, you will see things you don't see when you are just going through the motions'.
If you can do one thing differently today, take a look at your business card and stop letting the title define who you are. Realise that working with your head up will open an array of possibilities that only you can create!
